TIIE FIVE-BEARDED COB. 
X90 
The Five-Bearded Cod*. 
'X HE colour of this is a deep olive brown ; in its lliap® 
and (limy covering it fomewhat refembles the eel ; it is. 
however, much iborter and thicker, efpecially towards th® 
belly : There are two different fpecies, the one with five 
beards, and the other uniformly with three ; the forme* 
has four upon the upper jaw the latter only two. Front 
the extremity of the lower jaw in both, there hangs. ® 
beard : The feales of both kinds are extremely minute » 
each has the fame number of fins, and in the fame pc^' 
tion ; they are diftinguilhed by the fliapeof the two dot' 
fal fins ; the firft rifes a little way behind the head, whet® 
it is lodged in a deep furrow, and confifts of a number 0 
iliort unconne&ed rays, or filaments ; behind this furrow, 
the middle of the back, rifes the fecond dorfal fin, confi 
derably higher than the firft, and extending alrooft to th« 
tail, which is rounded at the extremity ; this fin is ft‘P' 
ported by fifty-fix rays, and the anal one, oppofite to ^ 
by forty-feven. This fpecies grows to the length 0 
nineteen inches, and weighs upwards of two pounds. 
The three-bearded cod is nearly of the fame fixe wl 
the other, of which Willoughby reckons it only a vat ^ 
ty ; it is, however, eafily diftinguifhable, by having 
upper part of the body variegated by a number of 
fpots upon a reddilh ground. The Cornijh fi^ er ^ c 
* Muflcla vulgaris, Ronu. Sea-JLoach, Will. 
